The pan-European Stoxx 600 index sank 0.3 percent as traders kicked off Monday’s session, with most sectors and major bourses in the red. Market players monitored news of slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy. It’s the latest sign of weakness in the Chinese economy, and comes at a critical time in Beijing’s trade battle with the United States. Meanwhile, traders await British Prime Minister Theresa May’s announcement of a “Plan B” for Brexit which she is due to present in parliame

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index sank 0.3 percent as traders kicked off Monday’s session, with most sectors and major bourses in the red.

Market players monitored news of slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy. Official data published Monday said China’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2018 grew 6.6 percent from the previous year, in line with analyst expectations but at its most sluggish rate in almost three decades.

It’s the latest sign of weakness in the Chinese economy, and comes at a critical time in Beijing’s trade battle with the United States. The two countries have been locked in a tense sparring of tariffs since the start of last year, but are currently trying to prevent any further escalation over the course of a 90-day truce.

Over the weekend, President Donald Trump said a trade deal with China “could very well happen,” but denied what he called “false reports” that the U.S. was considering lifting duties on Chinese imports.

Meanwhile, traders await British Prime Minister Theresa May’s announcement of a “Plan B” for Brexit which she is due to present in parliament later on Monday.

Last week, U.K. lawmakers rejected May’s EU withdrawal agreement, an event that was largely expected. The prime minister subsequently won a confidence vote that was tabled by opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn, albeit by a slim margin of 19 votes.

Sterling was barely changed in early morning trade, trading just below the flatline at $1.2871.

In corporate news, Logitech is due to report third-quarter results on Monday.

In terms of data, Germany’s December Producer Price Index (PPI) will be released at 2 a.m. ET.

Asia Pacific markets started the trading week with gains despite China reporting that its economy grew at the lowest official pace in 28 years. Fourth quarter GDP growth was 6.4 percent, which was also in line with expectations. While Beijing’s official GDP figures are seen as one of the crucial indicators of China’s economic health, many outside experts have expressed skepticism about the veracity of the numbers. “Falling producer prices and new export orders point to a slowdown in China’s grow

Asia Pacific markets started the trading week with gains despite China reporting that its economy grew at the lowest official pace in 28 years.

The world’s second-largest economy grew 6.6 percent in 2018, which matched analysts’ expectations, and was lower than a revised 6.8 percent growth in 2017. Fourth quarter GDP growth was 6.4 percent, which was also in line with expectations.

“I think what we’re seeing actually in the fourth quarter is that while the economy is decelerating, we actually still have some of the supports,” Helen Zhu, head of China equities at Blackrock, told CNBC’s “Street Signs” on Monday. “For example, for most of the quarter, from the export front loading impact that we had probably before the Argentina G-20 (summit) when people’s expectations regarding trade became a little bit more optimistic.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to a 90-day pause in tariff escalation at the G-20 summit in Argentina late in 2018.

While Beijing’s official GDP figures are seen as one of the crucial indicators of China’s economic health, many outside experts have expressed skepticism about the veracity of the numbers.

Raymond Yeung, chief economist for Greater China at the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, wrote in a note that China’s GDP numbers are “not an accurate gauge” of its economic growth. Still, he pointed out, the gap between the actual figures and the official targets usually shapes the government’s policy stance.

“Falling producer prices and new export orders point to a slowdown in China’s growth momentum,” Yeung added. “To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 2019, President Xi (Jinping) will still likely launch growth-supportive policies.”

The mainland Chinese markets, closely watched as a result of the ongoing U.S.-China trade fight, saw gains on the back of the data release. The Shanghai composite rose more than 0.5 percent to close at about 2,610.51 while the Shenzhen composite gained 0.607 percent to end its trading day at around 1,330.17. The Shenzhen component also advanced 0.592 percent to close at approximately 7,626.24.

Oil prices firmed on Monday after data showed China’s economic slowdown was not as big as some analysts had expected, with supply cuts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries also offering support. International Brent crude oil futures were at $62.83 per barrel at 0259, up 13 cents, or 0.2 percent, from their last close. Both oil price benchmarks had dipped into the red earlier in the session on fears that China’s 2018 economic growth figures would be weaker. China’s Septemb

Oil prices firmed on Monday after data showed China’s economic slowdown was not as big as some analysts had expected, with supply cuts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries also offering support.

International Brent crude oil futures were at $62.83 per barrel at 0259, up 13 cents, or 0.2 percent, from their last close.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $53.92 a barrel, up 12 cents, or 0.2 percent.

Both oil price benchmarks had dipped into the red earlier in the session on fears that China’s 2018 economic growth figures would be weaker.

In an expected cooling, China’s economy grew by 6.6 percent in 2018, its slowest expansion in 28 years and down from a revised 6.8 percent in 2017, official data showed on Monday. China’s September-December 2018 growth was at 6.4 percent, down from 6.5 percent in the previous quarter.

Although the slowdown was in line with expectations and not as sharp as some analysts had expected, the cooling of the world’s number two economy casts a shadow over global growth.

Researchers at Bernstein Energy said the supply cuts led by OPEC “will move the market back into supply deficit” for most of 2019 and that “this should allow oil prices to rise to U.S. $70 per barrel before year-end from current levels of U.S.$60 per barrel.”

In the United States, energy firms cut 21 oil rigs in the week to Jan. 18, taking the total count down to 852, the lowest since May 2018, energy services firm Baker Hughes said in a weekly report on Friday.

It was biggest decline since February 2016, as drillers reacted to the 40 percent plunge in U.S. crude prices late last year.

However, U.S. crude oil production still rose by more than 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2018, to a record 11.9 million bpd.

With the rig count stalling, last year’s growth rate is unlikely to be repeated in 2019, although most analysts expect annual production to average well over 12 million bpd, making the United States the world’s biggest oil producer ahead of Russia and Saudi Arabia.

In just a few years, mobile payment has become so ingrained in the lives of Chinese people that they are driving stores in overseas tourist destinations to adopt the technology. Three-fourths of supermarkets and convenience stores in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand now accept Chinese mobile payment, according to a Nielsen survey released Monday. Alipay co-issued the report, which covers 1,244 merchants and 2,806 Chinese residents surveyed in the fall of 2018. “Along with the increasingly person

In just a few years, mobile payment has become so ingrained in the lives of Chinese people that they are driving stores in overseas tourist destinations to adopt the technology.

Three-fourths of supermarkets and convenience stores in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand now accept Chinese mobile payment, according to a Nielsen survey released Monday. Some 71 percent of duty-free stores and luxury stores in those countries also take the payment method.

The two dominant operators are Alipay, which is run by Alibaba-affiliate Ant Financial, and WeChat Pay, which is tied to Tencent’s ubiquitous Chinese messaging app, WeChat. Alipay co-issued the report, which covers 1,244 merchants and 2,806 Chinese residents surveyed in the fall of 2018.

“Along with the increasingly personalized and sophisticated demand of Chinese tourists, improving the global coverage of mobile payments is a long-term project (for merchants),” Andy Zhao, president of Nielsen China, said in a statement.

The absence of President Donald Trump and key members of his cabinet at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos this week probably won’t matter all that much, analysts told CNBC, but it is an accurate reflection of global affairs over the last 12 months. Thousands of business, political and cultural leaders are scheduled to return to the Swiss Alpine town of Davos on Monday. The annual forum is seen as an opportunity for international heads of state to come together to try and put the world to r

The absence of President Donald Trump and key members of his cabinet at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos this week probably won’t matter all that much, analysts told CNBC, but it is an accurate reflection of global affairs over the last 12 months.

Thousands of business, political and cultural leaders are scheduled to return to the Swiss Alpine town of Davos on Monday. The annual forum is seen as an opportunity for international heads of state to come together to try and put the world to rights.

But, this year’s five-day event is without its main attraction of 2018, after Trump abruptly scrapped plans to join other world leaders at the forum due to the ongoing government shutdown.

“The U.S. does not need this quasi-public forum to communicate its thoughts, in fact I think it would be better if the current administration would communicate it’s every thought a little less often,” Steven Blitz, chief U.S. economist at TS Lombard, told CNBC via email.

“The bigger loser of the U.S. not attending in some official capacity is Davos, as Trump basically is telling them it is an expensive boondoggle that is nice to attend, but not necessary for the U.S. government. He is right,” Blitz said.

British lending start-up MarketInvoice said Monday that it secured £56 million ($72 million) in a mix of equity and debt funding from investors. The London-based financial technology firm lets small-to-medium enterprises sell their unpaid invoices through an online platform to gain access to working capital loans. MarketInvoice said the investment consisted of a £26 million funding round led by British bank Barclays and the venture capital arm of Spanish lender Santander, as well as a £30 millio

British lending start-up MarketInvoice said Monday that it secured £56 million ($72 million) in a mix of equity and debt funding from investors.

The London-based financial technology firm lets small-to-medium enterprises sell their unpaid invoices through an online platform to gain access to working capital loans.

MarketInvoice said the investment consisted of a £26 million funding round led by British bank Barclays and the venture capital arm of Spanish lender Santander, as well as a £30 million debt facility from Viola Credit, the lending fund of Israeli private equity firm Viola Group.

The debt funding will go towards the firm’s business loan offering. Viola Credit and European venture capital firm Northzone also participated in the equity fundraising, MarketInvoice said.

Barclays last year bought a significant minority stake in the firm, as part of a strategic partnership that will see the bank’s business clients gain access to MarketInvoice’s invoice finance solutions.

Anil Stocker, co-founder and chief executive of MarketInvoice, said the new capital would be used to boost its business in the U.K. and help it forge more partnerships with banks — with a particular focus on cross-border tie-ups.

“We’re using this money to scale the business here in the U.K., which means delivering on the strategic partnership that we have with Barclays and investing more in tech and data,” he told CNBC in a phone interview.

Tax cuts in China could be at the center of Beijing’s fight against a slowing economy amid an ongoing trade spat with the U.S., experts said. “Fiscal policy will be the front line of defense against mounting macroeconomic headwinds in 2019,” Haibin Zhu, J.P. Morgan’s chief China economist, wrote in a recent note. The challenges in China’s economy are already starting to show. That comes amid signs of softening demand — with recent data pointing to weaker exports and a slowdown in manufacturing a

Tax cuts in China could be at the center of Beijing’s fight against a slowing economy amid an ongoing trade spat with the U.S., experts said.

“Fiscal policy will be the front line of defense against mounting macroeconomic headwinds in 2019,” Haibin Zhu, J.P. Morgan’s chief China economist, wrote in a recent note.

The challenges in China’s economy are already starting to show. On Monday, Beijing reported its slowest GDP growth in decades, with official data showing that the economy grew 6.6 percent in 2018 compared to a year ago — it’s slowest rate of expansion since 1990.

That comes amid signs of softening demand — with recent data pointing to weaker exports and a slowdown in manufacturing activity — as the trade war with the U.S. appears to be taking a toll. Analysts such as Zhu say that Beijing will need to turn to fiscal measures, which typically means boosting government spending and cutting taxes, in order to stimulate the economy.

Turkey is ready to take over security in Syria’s Manbij, where four U.S. citizens died in an Islamic State-claimed bombing last week, President Tayyip Erdogan told U.S. President Donald Trump in a telephone call on Sunday, the Turkish presidency said. Manbij, which U.S.-backed forces captured from Islamic State in 2016, has emerged as a focal point of tensions after Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. forces whose presence has effectively deterred Turkey from attacking Kurdish forces. Manbij is co

Turkey is ready to take over security in Syria’s Manbij, where four U.S. citizens died in an Islamic State-claimed bombing last week, President Tayyip Erdogan told U.S. President Donald Trump in a telephone call on Sunday, the Turkish presidency said.

Erdogan told Trump that the suicide bombing in Manbij, a town in northeast Syria controlled by a militia allied to U.S.-backed Kurdish forces, was a provocative act aimed at affecting Trump’s decision last month to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria.

Trump confounded his own national security team with a surprise decision on Dec. 19 to withdraw all 2,000 U.S. troops from Syria, declaring the Islamic State militant group had been defeated there, a view not shared by many experts.

Manbij, which U.S.-backed forces captured from Islamic State in 2016, has emerged as a focal point of tensions after Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. forces whose presence has effectively deterred Turkey from attacking Kurdish forces.

Manbij is controlled by U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a militia allied to the U.S.-backed Kurdish YPG. Ankara views the YPG as a terrorist group and an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that has for decades waged a separatist insurgency in Turkey.

In its description of the call, the White House made no mention of Erdogan’s offer to take over security in Manbij but said the two men agreed to keep pursuing a negotiated settlement for northeastern Syria that meets both nations’ security needs.

“President Trump underscored the importance of defeating terrorist elements that remain in Syria,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a description of the call.

“The two leaders agreed to continue to pursue a negotiated solution for northeast Syria that achieves our respective security concerns. They also discussed their mutual interest in expanding the trade relationship between the United States and Turkey,” the spokeswoman added.

Trump has previously warned Turkey not to attack the Kurds in Syria and appeared to threaten Turkey’s economy if it did.

In its statement, the Turkish presidency also said that the two leaders had agreed to accelerate discussions between their chiefs of staff about a safe zone in northeastern Syria.

Last week, Trump suggested creating a safe zone, without elaborating. The SDF said on Wednesday it was ready to help create a safe zone, as fears grow that the U.S. withdrawal will give Turkey the opportunity to mount a new assault.

The impact of tumultuous geopolitical affairs on global growth is one of the biggest concerns for the president of the World Economic Forum (WEF). Speaking to CNBC on the eve of this year’s forum in Davos, Switzerland, WEF President Borge Brende said geopolitical conflicts could damage global growth. “There are many things that concern me but I would say that those geopolitical conflicts can, if not handled the right way, can have a negative impact on growth,” he told CNBC’s Hadley Gamble on Sun

The impact of tumultuous geopolitical affairs on global growth is one of the biggest concerns for the president of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Speaking to CNBC on the eve of this year’s forum in Davos, Switzerland, WEF President Borge Brende said geopolitical conflicts could damage global growth.

“There are many things that concern me but I would say that those geopolitical conflicts can, if not handled the right way, can have a negative impact on growth,” he told CNBC’s Hadley Gamble on Sunday.

“We’re already seeing a slowing of global growth with the negative impact that will have on a lot of people around the world, also when it comes to creating jobs. We’re not out of the woods when it comes to jobs, for example in Europe many countries are still facing 20 percent youth unemployment,” he noted.